Burkas have no place in civil nations. Burkas insult both non muslim women and men. Burkas pose a very large security risk and cultish behavior should not be considered religious rights. Civil standards must be put in place.

12:35 am April 2, 2010

Nonsense wrote:

Europeans prove yet again they are paranoid racists. To the fool below, how is it an "insult" to you if a woman dresses in her way? Get over yourself. If security is the concern, lock up every young white male on sight. In fact the vast majority of terrorists in the world are white males.

1:58 pm April 2, 2010

John wrote:

Nonsense.12.35am
Playing the tired old racist card again the "last refuge of a scoundrel"
Integrate or get out it should be that simple.
We have kow-towed to Islamic sensitivities for too long.

8:37 pm April 3, 2010

European wrote:

We don't like the way you dress. It destroys our decorum. We went through our own Dark Ages and do not want to revert to such times. We don't even have to give you an explanation why we do not like your face veils, we simply ask you not to wear them, nicely at first, of course.

We allowed you on our continent out of mercy and because you were starving, genitally mutilated, hunted down and killed by tribes in the village next door, back in your sacred and holy lands. You are here on a probational basis and not because the European people themselves like you at all, but because our politicians had the crazy idea that a multicultural society will work someday. We do not like you and you really need to hear our dinner conversations about your ridiculous attire, ridiculous God and Prophet and so on.

You are not wanted or liked in Europe - behave like us or leave. History has shown that any other alternatives produce unpleasant results. So, shut up, let your put on a pair of revealing shorts and enjoy our nudist beaches.

12:39 am April 4, 2010

Don't ask , don't tell wrote:

Can anyone just be religious without having to carry it on their sleeves ? Nobody wants to know what your religion is .

4:31 pm April 4, 2010

Iftikhar wrote:

Some young Muslim feminists consider the hijab and niqab political symbols, a way of rejecting Western excesses such as binge drinking, casual sex and drug use. Which is more liberating: being judged on the length of your skirt and size of your breasts, or on your character and intelligence?

A careful reading of the Qur’an shows that just about everything Western feminists fought for in the 1970s was available 1,400 years ago to Muslim women, who are considered equal to men in spirituality, education and worth. When Islam offers women so much, why are Western men so obsessed with Muslim women’s attire? Even British government ministers Gordon Brown and John Reid have made disparaging remarks about the niqab, and they hail from Scotland, where men wear skirts.

“common sense” not to wear the niqab because it makes social relations “more difficult.” Nonsense. If this were the case, why are cell phones, e-mail, text messaging and fax machines in daily use?

Covering ones body up does not reduce their intelligence or physical and mental capabilties in running their home, raising their kids, getting a degree, making money, being an informed member of society or their social interaction with other fellow humans. The niqaab does not make them inferior.

Why are people reluctant to associate with us as willingly and openly as with other Muslim women who don't cover their face? We don't bite or are any different. Is is because they are afraid that we are more 'terroristically' inclinded because we choose to follow our religion more closely? On the contrary, people who follow their religions closely, any relgion, realize that they are under more obligation to uphold the sanctity of their faith under all circumstances and no religion teaches violence.

To make a long argument short , women who cover their face and observe Niqab, are as normal as anyone else. If we are the victims then we are indeed the victims of mass propoganda and false advertising againts Muslim women that has caused this breach of trust between us and the rest of the world.

We are very normal, we are very human and we are as intelligent as anyone else....the real beauty and inner strength lies within the mind. By wearing Hijab or niqab, a Muslim woman is able to confidentially project her opinions and ideas without having the pressure of being secretly or publicly critiqued of their body.

Today, our society encourages women to show off their bodies, and not show off their brains. Female models are often underweight, and the media tells us this is the way women should look like!! dont make me laugh!!!!
Iftikhar Ahmadhttp://www.londonschoolofislamics.org.uk

2:43 pm April 5, 2010

1917 Mexican constitution wrote:

From the 1917 Mexican constitution :

-" Their 1917 constitution included five articles :

Article 3 allowed only secular education in the schools
Article 5 banned monastic orders
Article 24 allowed public worship only inside churches
Article 27 restricted the right of religious organizations to hold property
Article 130, Priests and nuns:
-were forbidden to wear clerical attire
-were not allowed to vote
-were not allowed to criticize government officials
-were not allowed to comment on public affairs in religious periodicals ."

1:57 pm April 6, 2010

Jay wrote:

I just can't believe that a nation which claims to be a member of the 21st century is even seriously considering such an inhumane law. Lets make hats illegal, and pants for the matter. Coats are a serious threat to our society as people can hide a bomb. Nonsense. Get over the fact that you lived there "first" and move on with your life and let others do and wear what they wish.

7:50 am April 8, 2010

2010 wrote:

Jay, the burqa law is just an extention of a Belgian national security law prohibiting individuals from walking in the streets with their faces covered as this can and has been used by criminals (regardless of religion) to perpetuate illegal acts unrecognized. Why should it be illegal for any random indivdual to walk around in a ski mask but be perfectly alright to wear a burqa?
This is the reason it hasn't created an uproar in the muslim or non-muslim communities, it just makes sense.
Harldy inhumane. If you're looking for inhumane disregard for human rights, look at Guantanamo instead. Interestingly less covered by the anglo saxon media yet a completely different level of human rights violation

2:09 pm April 9, 2010

ChristianTurk wrote:

Indeed such dress code can be misused by criminals. There is no such rule in Quran that woman should be covered that much. Just some moronic Pakistanis and Arabs created such stupid rule violate women rights. Faith is not about opposing community without logic. Faith is rather attitude and mindset. But i guess the Belgian government has a lot of fault. They have been importing very low educated Muslims just to create more Islam-o-phobia in the middle of the Europe. Belgian immigration rules so stupid and it works reverse, So intellectuals and smart people usually being rejected to be resident or citizen of Belgium. They rather give citizenship to narrow minded freaks and Kurdish terrorists.

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The Wall Street Journal’s Brussels blog is produced by the Brussels bureau of The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires. The bureau has been headed since 2009 by Stephen Fidler, who was previously a correspondent and editor for the Financial Times and Reuters. Also posting regularly: Matthew Dalton, Viktoria Dendrinou, Tom Fairless, Naftali Bendavid, Laurence Norman, Gabriele Steinhauser and Valentina Pop.